Mobile City Council to vote on $5.1 million financing plan to purchase public safety vehicles

"It's one of the reasons we pushed so hard to put in the temporary sales tax, so we can catch up," - Mobile Mayor Sam Jones.

Two ladder trucks could be purchased under a financing deal the City Council will vote on Tuesday. A total of $5.1 million in police, fire and public works vehicles are slated to be purchased under the plan. (File photo)

MOBILE, Alabama – An aging fleet that includes 23 police
cars with more than 250,000 miles on them and a nearly 25-year-old ladder truck
regularly operating within the Fire Department could be upgraded under a $5.1
million lease agreement the City Council will vote on Tuesday.

The five-year payment plan includes $2.1 million for two new
ladder trucks, $1.6 million for police cars, $600,000 for three new garbage
trucks, $376,000 for four knuckle boom loaders utilized by Public Works, and
$372,000 for five other trucks within the department.

If the council endorses the borrowing plan, it will make
taxpayer's liable for twice-yearly payments of $529,541.45 until Aug. 15, 2017.
The first payment is due Feb. 15.

"I think that one of the things we need to do is make sure
we maintain the capacity to rotate our fleet," Mayor Sam Jones said today.

City Council President Reggie Copeland said he believes the
borrowing will be endorsed, saying that equipment needs to be replaced.
Budgetary issues halted previous year purchases.

"We got to stay with our police and fire people and public
safety is the No. 1 priority," Copeland said.

"It's one of the reasons we pushed so hard to put in the
temporary sales tax, so we can catch up," Jones said.

City police and fire officials say that even if the council
approves the plan, it won't address all of the replacement needs.

Police spokesman Cpl. Christopher Levy, said the department
plans to replace "65 to 70" vehicles under the program, removing the fleet of
cars which have in excess of 250,000 miles. One of the vehicles is above
300,000 miles, he said.

"We want to make sure we have the officers out there working
in the safest equipment possible," Levy said.

Even with the new vehicles, there will be a number of police
cars on Mobile's streets that have between 200,000 to 250,000 miles. The city
has 110 vehicles that have more than 150,000 miles; 261 vehicles are under
100,000 miles.

"We're still going to have a number of vehicles with a lot
of mileage out there," Levy said.

Steve Huffman, spokesman with the Mobile Fire Rescue
Department, said the two ladder trucks will allow the department to rotate two
others – one purchased in 1987, the other in 1988 – into reserves. The department
has five ladder trucks that are regularly operating, and currently has none in
reserves.

"The ladder trucks are what we desperately need," Huffman
said. "Fire trucks are necessary and naturally, they are the most expensive. It's
not like buying a family car. When they are at a fire, they are constantly
running. They never shut off except when in the station."

Other fire trucks are just as old, if not older, and will
remain part of the department's fleet. The oldest of those trucks dates to
1984, when Doug Flutie was still a quarterback at Boston College.

"We have fire trucks of all kind that break down constantly,"
Huffman said.